On the fifth and sixth days of the first lunar month, the prime ministers' families such as the Lu family, Wang family, Yan family, Fan family, Song family, etc. came to pay New Year's greetings.
Although Zhao Jun rarely took the initiative to pay New Year's greetings, his family was always full of guests. Even if the heads of other prime ministers' families did not come, they would at least send one of their children or grandchildren to pay their respects.
This also meant that the Zhao family's home was basically restless after the New Year. From the New Year to the Lantern Festival, it was not until after the fifteenth day of the first lunar month that it became quiet. It was rare for them to have a few days of comfort.
Unfortunately, we have to go back to work right after the Lantern Festival holiday.
On the 21st day of the first lunar month, Zhao Jun arrived at the Institute of Political System early in the morning. The door of the Institute of Political System had just been opened, and Su Huan and several clerks from the Imperial Decree Office were still moving documents.
Seeing Zhao Jun coming, Su Huan, still holding the documents in his hands, stood at the door and bowed slightly, saying, "Director."
"Um."
Zhao Jun nodded and walked into the house.
I haven't worked in the office for more than 20 days, and the room seems to be covered with a layer of dust.
Su Huan placed the document in his hand on the clerk's desk near the door, and then went to turn on the light.
With a "bang".
The electric light hanging from the ceiling of the Constitutional Court was turned on, and the originally dim room quickly became bright.
Zhao Jun walked all the way to his own table at the back of the room, then waved to Su Huan and said, "Wenfu, come here."
"Zhiyuan."
Su Huan came over after turning on the light.
"Are those the official documents that have accumulated since the New Year?"
"Yes, shall I bring it to the Magistrate?"
"Um."
Zhao Jun responded.
He still has the same old habit of caring about work.
It's not about power.
At this position, the power is so great that there is no limit, so naturally there is no such thing as power-hungry behavior.
Some people, having such power, just enjoy it, like a feudal emperor.
But Zhao Jun felt uncomfortable being idle at home. If he didn't read official documents and care about national affairs every day, he felt that he had no value in existence.
This may also be the meaning of his life now.
I put all my hopes on the fact that as long as I work hard, the future of the Song Dynasty will be better.
Su Huan took the official document.
There are naturally some rules for this thing. Those placed at the top will be seen by the prime minister first, and those placed at the bottom will be seen last, or even ignored.
Otherwise, why would the Imperial Decree Bureau have such great power?
All departments have to curry favor.
However, Su Huan knew very well what Zhao Jun cared about first, so he did not play so many tricks, but put the important things first.
Zhao Jun took the first document and took a look at it. It was a joint document between the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
These days, the Song Dynasty is celebrating the New Year, and Bianliang is celebrating the New Year as well. The streets have been a little deserted for a few days after the New Year, and many foreign envoys have been jointly hosted by the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
In addition to the expenses reported for entertainment, the two departments also have many matters to deal with from various diplomatic missions.
For example, the dates for the envoys from various countries to return home were almost set. They entrusted the goods they brought to their own merchants in Bianliang for sale, and then purchased a lot of things.
After the purchased materials were loaded onto the ship and their mission was completed, many envoys were eager to leave.
Some of them had already placed orders, but they did not bring so much money this time, so they decided to take some of the goods back first, and come to Song Dynasty to purchase again when they had enough money.
Therefore, basically from late January to mid-February, envoys from more than 20 countries will leave one after another. The official documents list in detail the orders from these countries and the goods to be sent to Guangzhou.
"Um."
After reading the document, Zhao Jun said with satisfaction, "This is a good start. Trade between countries will become more and more frequent in the future."
Su Huan smiled and said, "This celebration was well organized. After the nations came to the Song Dynasty, they were all shocked by its prosperity and splendor. They all admired the Celestial Empire. I heard that even the princes of Goryeo and Dali were unwilling to leave the capital and wanted to stay in Bianliang as hostages."
"That's really interesting."
Zhao Jun laughed: "My Song Dynasty doesn't have any interest in hostages, and there are still people who want to stay as hostages."
Su Huan also laughed: "I guess it's because the spring flowers and autumn moons of Bianliang are so attractive. These days, foreign vassals are lingering in the theaters, brothels, and restaurants. They are the benefactors of various shops. The Ministry of Industry and Commerce said that they collected a lot of extra taxes at the end of the year."
The smile on Zhao Jun's face slowly disappeared, and he became pensive again.
Su Huan saw that his expression was wrong and was confused for a moment. He mistakenly thought that he had said something wrong, so he quickly kept silent.
In fact, he didn't say anything wrong.
But when Zhao Jun heard the words "tavern", "brothel" and "restaurant", he remembered something bad.
That is, although the emergence of textile factories greatly improved the status of women in the old society, many women were able to be self-reliant and work in factories to support themselves.
But this is only a minority after all.
The status of the vast majority of women has actually remained largely unchanged. The fifty-four brothels in Bianliang are still operating as usual, with revelry every night.
Although the imperial court prohibited coercion, many people did it voluntarily. There were also many parents who favored boys over girls and forced their daughters to go because this job made money quickly and could make the family rich quickly.
It’s no wonder that a complete ban was imposed in later generations. But if there had not been a major change in ancient times, the resistance to banning this industry would have been extremely great.
This is not something that can be achieved by killing a large number of officials, landlords, and nobles. It can only be done step by step.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
